Madam Ana Algabre Hernandez presenting one of the Philippines’ most famous dishes, the kare-kare.

The Philippine Embassy in Ankara, Turkey held a cooking demonstration at the Hilton Ankara Hotel on 18 December 2020. The event is part of the Embassy’s cultural diplomacy initiatives to promote Philippine cuisine to the wider Turkish public and serve as a platform for the possible entry of Philippine products in Turkey.

Madam Ana Algabre Hernandez, spouse of H.E. Raul S. Hernandez, Philippine Ambassador to Turkey, gave a demonstration on how to cook one of the Philippines’ most famous dishes, the kare-kare in two ways – the traditional and the Mama Sita way. Madam Hernandez selected kare-kare for its similarity to some traditional Turkish dishes and for the way it caters to the Turkish palette.

Madam Ana Hernandez explained the intricate preparations involved in cooking kare-kare the traditional way. She used oxtail and its broth, glutinous rice, chopped roasted peanuts, peanut butter and dissolved annatto seeds as ingredients. Madam Hernandez also cooked the dish the Mama Sita way – requiring only the dissolution of the Mama Sita kare-kare mix in water or stock along with vegetables and oxtail or beef.

Hilton Executive Chef Mehmet Yigit Alper, businessman, Mr. Ali Boydak, and Editor-in-Chief of The Diplomatic Observer, Mr. Serhat Onalp were on hand on to sample the final product and praised the taste and flavors of the kare-kare.

The cooking demonstration aimed to present the Philippines` unique culture and identity through food and highlight that Philippine cuisine can cater to the tastes of the Turkish mainstream public. Mama Sita’s book, “Flavors of the Philippines Traditional and Contemporary Filipino Dishes Made Easy for Home Cooks in the Middle East” was also given to the guests as a token of appreciation.

The video of the cooking demonstration can be accessed through the following link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TB6MmSqFzso&feature=youtu.be

(L-R Chef Alpar, Mr. Boydak, Mdm. Ana, Ambassador Hernandez, Mr. Serhat, Vice Consul Marc Benigno and Attache Sheila Solas)

Madam Hernandez using the Mama Sita kare-kare mix as she demonstrates how to cook kare-kare the Mama Sita way.